Rotating toy



L. R. LAWTER Dec. 13, 1955 ROTATING TOY Filed March 15, 1954 Lee Roy Law/er BY w INVENTOR. we

United States Patent 1 2,726,480 ROTATING TOY Lee Roy Lawter, South Miami, Fla. Application March 15, 1954, Serial No. 416,296 2 Claims. (Cl. 4652) This invention relates to an amusement device and has for its primary object the provision of an assembly composed of relatively movable parts which, when manipulated in the required manner, will provide amusement for the user.

Another object of this invention is to provide an amusement device which incorporates an elongated body or stick member adapted to be gripped at one end, a pair of wing members pivotally connected to the opposite ends of the body member, and a positioning means for maintaining the wings in an initial or starting position such that reciprocation of the body will effect rotation of the wing members in opposite directions.

Still another object of this invention is to provide an amusement device in conformity with the foregoing objects wherein the wing members are provided with transverse bands of various colors so that the wing members, when spinning, will present a pleasing and amusing spectacle.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the amusement device showing its manner of operation;

Figure 2 is a longitudinal section taken through one end of the device showing details of construction on enlarged scale;

Figure 3 is an enlarged section taken along the plane of section line 3-3 in Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an end view of the device in starting position; and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of one of the spacing members.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, reference numeral indicates the main body portion of the assembly generally which presents a hand grip portion 12 at one end thereof. The hand grip portion is preferably clearly marked by both a colored band 14 and other markings throughout its extent so that a user may readily discern its limits, the purpose of this construction being presently apparent.

The upper end portion 16 of the body member is provided with a transverse bore at its extremity and a shaft 20 is snugly received therein with its opposite ends projecting from the body.

Elongated wing members 22 and 24 are provided with enlarged transverse bores adjacent one end so that these wing members may be freely and rotatably received on the shaft 20. To maintain these members against displacement from the shaft, suitable elements such as nails with enlarged heads 26 are driven into the opposite ends of the shaft in the manner shown.

In order to reduce interference and friction to a minimum, it is desirable to space each wing member slightly from the body or stick 10 and for this purpose the spacing members shown in Figure 5 are used. These spacers employ an annular portion 28 having diametrically opposed, depending prongs 30 integrally formed therewith and they are attached by their prongs to each adjacent face between the wings and the stick, as shown more clearly in Figure 2 and to effect a slight spacing therebetween, as will be readily observed.

A positioning or starting means is associated with the body adjacent the juncture of the portions 12 and 16 thereof and, as seen, this means consists of a T-shaped 2,726,480 latented Dec. 13, 1955 element having a stem 32 and a cross bar 34. The cross bar is longer than the width of the body or stick 10 such that its ends project on opposite sides thereof. The stem has an elongated slot 36 therein and a guide strip 38 is secured to the body in overlying relation to the stem by means of a suitable fastener 40 projecting through the slot.

To operate the device, the body is gripped in the hand portion 12, taking care not to place the hand above this portion, and the thumb is utilized to slide the starting member upwardly so that the cross bar engages with the free ends of the wings maintaining them in the position illustrated in Figure 4 when the device is held in a vertical position. The body is then brought downward sharply while the starting means is simultaneously slid downwardly out of the path of movement of the wings, this action swinging the wings about shaft 20 in opposite directions to substantially vertical, upwardly extending positions. The body is then thrust upwardly to complete the swing of the Wing members and continued reciprocation will sustain the rotation thereof.

To render the device more amusing, the wing members may be provided with colored bands 42 and a hell or other noisemaker 44 may be attached to the end of the stick.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. An amusement device comprising, an elongated body member presenting a hand grip portion at one end, a pair of elongated wing members pivotally connected at one end to the other end of said body member for free rotation about a common axis, said wing members being disposed parallel to said body member and to each other, and means for initially selectively positioning said wing members such that their longitudinal axes are angularly disposed with respect to each other, whereby reciprocation of said body member will effect rotation of said wing members in opposite directions, said means comprising a member slidably mounted on said body member and projectible at will into and out of the paths of movement of the free ends of said wing members.

2. An amusement device comprising, an elongated body member presenting a hand grip portion at one end, a pair of elongated wing members pivotally connected at one end to the other end of said body member for free rotation about a common axis, said wing members being disposed parallel to said body member and to each other, and means for initially selectively positioning said wing members such that their longitudinal axes are angularly disposed with respect to each other, whereby reciprocation of said body member will effect rotation of said wing members in opposite directions, said means comprising a T-shaped member having its stem portion slidably disposed longitudinally of said body member and its cross bar projecting on opposite sides thereof, whereby said cross bar is projectible at will into and out of the paths of movement of the free ends of said wing members.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,489,107 Rheingold Nov. 22, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS 8,847 Denmark Sept. 10, 1906 48,906 Denmark June 25, 1934 

